Greater Kansas City and the surrounding region is home to a treasure trove of educational riches. From a 4-year-old’s first exposure to a classroom, to those hardy souls who earn doctoral degrees, the region is rich with exceptional educational opportunities— most of which are more affordable than in many other parts of the country.

Consider that time and again, voters on both sides of the state line repeatedly—almost without fail—pony up when their
local school districts say they need help. That results in awardwinning public school districts from North Kansas City to
Olathe, from Park Hill to Lee’s Summit, and points in between and well beyond.

Consider that many of the city’s most respected business leaders are proud graduates of several of the area’s outstanding private high schools, legendary institutions such as Rockhurst and Pembroke Hill, while newer schools on the Kansas side are gaining widespread respect.

Consider that the region’s public colleges and universities continue, year after year, to gain national accolades, increase enrollment, attract huge gifts and donations from proud alumni and continually improve the educational xperience in the face of trying financial times.

And consider that the region is home to several of the most respected private liberal arts colleges in the country, repeatedly mentioned in reports and magazines as among the best buys in education.

None of this is any accident. We live in a region where taxpayers and lawmakers, students and parents, business people and alumni all recognize the importance of quality, affordable education. Where our schools are concerned, it really does take a village.

But every village needs a good leader. And Kansas City area schools, colleges and universities have been blessed with an abundance of exceptional leadership.

On the occasion of our 35th Anniversary, Ingram’s is proud to launch a new honors program, “Icons of Education.” In this inaugural year, we recognize nine people who have had a profound impact on their educational institutions and their communities. Many—not all—have either recently retired or will soon. Their dedication to their profession and, most notably, to the students they served, will be missed. These education icons will be appreciated by all who follow in their footsteps and by their colleagues at other outstanding institutions, many of whom are more than worthy of inclusion on this list.

Dr. Richard L. Wallace

Chancellor Emeritus, University of Missouri-Columbia

 

In an era when CEOs at many institutions—including universities—are imported from other places, Richard Wallace is a rarity. By the time he was named chancellor at the University of Missouri-Columbia in November 1997, he had already spent more than three decades as a proud and loyal Tiger. He came to Mizzou as an assistant professor of economics and community health and medical practice, and it wasn’t long before he landed his first administrative role, Chair of the Department of Economics. When he retired in 2005, after nearly four decades in Columbia, he left an indelible mark. He is widely praised for his leadership in increasing the diversity of the university’s enrollment, the creation of an open budget process, and the rapid growth of federal research support. It is his fund raising prowess, however, of which Dr. Wallace is most proud. He initiated a major private fund raising campaign in 1998 that built momentum and culminated this fall when it reached its revised goal of $1 billion—an increase from the original goal of $600 million. “The money raised has made an enormous difference in the level of support for students, faculty, and programs, and it has also provided substantial support for improvements in our buildings and other infrastructure.” Dr. Wallace’s path wasn’t typical, and he recognizes the importance of nurturing those who might want to follow it. “To aspire to administration has not always been popular within the faculty ranks, yet there are, I believe, enormous opportunities to make critically important contributions to the quality of our higher education institutions.”

 

Dr. Marjorie A. Kaplan

Former Superintendent, Shawnee Mission School District

 

Marjorie Kaplan moved to Arizona last year after more than 15 years at the helm of the Shawnee Mission School District. The reason for the move? Retirement, naturally. But that didn’t go as planned. “I flunked retirement,” she chuckled, while speaking from her new job as director of the Beat the Odds Institute, a non-profit center that studies why some children in poverty-level schools succeed while others don’t and then shares those finding with leaders in high-poverty districts. That might seem to be quite a sea-change after leading one of our region’s most prosperous school districts. The district is, after all, one of the most dynamic economic
engines in the county, employing 4,000 people, with a recent annual budget of some $260 million. It’s easy to forget, though, that when Dr. Kaplan took the reign of the district in 1992, the state legislature had recently implemented a new funding formula that aimed to help rural Kansas districts but had the unintended consequence of severely strapping healthier districts. “We had to reduce our budget by $23 million,” she said. “We had to close nine schools in order to protect our programs.” It was a difficult time. But Kaplan worked with other districts to present a unified voice to the legislature and eventually got the formula corrected. Through those difficult times, she was able to maintain widespread support from the community. “The people of Johnson County are dedicated to maintaining academic excellence. I’m proud that we accomplished so much while I was there, from curriculum improvement to facilities improvement.”

 

Dr. Jon Wefald

President, Kansas State University

 

After a remarkable 20-plus years at the helm of Kansas State University, Dr. Jon Wefald will retire at the end of the current school year. It’s difficult to envision a K-State without the man who has been so highly visible and openly enthusiastic about the institution he has guided for more than two decades. While K-State was gaining favorable national attention, due in part to a greatly improved football program from one of the worst to one of the best in the Big 12 [for which Wefald deserves at least a share of the credit for his enthusiastic support of the program and its coach], the university as a whole was making tremendous strides in every imaginable
category. Perhaps nothing stands out more than this: By the time he became president in 1986, K-State’s enrollment had dropped of by some 5,000 students in just five years, bottoming out at 14,000. “By hiring great people, we turned the university around,” he said. “We now have 23,500 students. When we went over 20,000, when everyone said it could not be done, that was a proud moment.” Private fund-raising has jumped from $5 million a year to $100 million a year. Research funding jumped from $40 million a year to $220 a year. And from 1986 to 2008, K-State had 125 Rhodes, Marshall, Truman, Goldwater and Udall Scholarship winners. “My greatest legacy has been creating a culture of empowerment. This means I have been willing to hire people who are smarter than I am and delegate to them the authority and responsibility to get the job done.”

Robert E. Hemenway

Chancellor, University of Kansas

 

Since becoming the 16th chancellor for the University of Kansas in 1995, Robert Hemenway has made his mark on academics, administration and athletics. More than 30,000 students attend KU, and although the school provides an excellent education – U.S. News & World Report ranks many of its graduate programs among the best in the nation – it also provides vital services to Kansas. With a focus on health research and an eye toward achieving a National Cancer Institute designation for the KU Cancer Center, the university keeps improving research and care for area patients. Under Hemenway’s stewardship, the university created the Kansas University Hospital Public Authority, which increased its income, assets and patient load. In addition to the medical industry, Hemenway has also championed KU programs that advance business, conservation and law enforcement in the state. Since 1995, 55 new patents have been issued to the university and 19 new startup companies were founded using KU intellectual property. In western Kansas, KU’s researchers measure ground water and police departments from all over the nation have officers who were trained at KU’s Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center. Hemenway’s work outside of the academic walls only adds to his list of accomplishments. After Hemenway hired athletic director Lew Perkins, the basketball team won a national title and the football team brought home an Orange Bowl victory. During his 14-year tenure, Hemenway has built an impressive resume, and with his extracurricular accolades he will retire in 2009 at the top of his game.

Dr. Tom Cummings

Superintendent, North Kansas City School District

 

In 1985, Tom Cummings became superintendent of a fragmented North Kansas City School District that stretched over a hodgepodge of disparate Northland communities. Despite a growing enrollment, there hadn’t been a new school built in 14 years, and many of the existing buildings were outdated. Today, parents and civic and business leaders from 14 different municipalities take great pride in one of the premier public school districts in the state. In a district that used to have trouble getting bond and levy issues approved, “there has been a changing of the mindset of the community toward its schools.” As he approaches retirement at the end of this school year, Cummings recalled his first week on the job. “I began talking about the need for that community connection, a need to open the district to the inclusion of all people involved.” Through aggressive use of advisory boards and extensive cooperation with and support from the business community, he has accomplished that goal. Case in point: The district is host to a significant population of students with limited English skills. Rather than treating that as a problem, NKC views it as an opportunity. Properly nurtured, these immigrant students can grow up to be business leaders in the community, helping the Northland compete in a global economy. Among the secrets to Cummings’ success? “If I have one skill at all, it’s to identify people with good skills and the right stuff and place them in the right positions, then support them and get out of their way.”

Dr. Tom Bryant

President, Pittsburg State University

 

Tom Bryant has been a “yes” man—and the university he has served for a remarkable 39 years is a better place for it. So, too, is higher education throughout the state of Kansas. Several times in his career he has been asked to step in and fill important roles. Since 1993 he served as the PSU dean of education. He served as interim president of PSU in 1995. In 1998 he served a year as interim executive director for the Board of Regents. Those roles paved the way for Bryant to be named president of Pittsburg State in 1999. “I didn’t set out to do this, it just happened,” he said. “But the university has been so worthy that when there has been a need, I have said yes.” He’s especially proud to be leading the same university where he earned his master’s degree and where he rose to the role of president from among the ranks of the faculty, a rare feat among regent institutions in Kansas. But this is his last year leading his beloved school. “I’ll be 69 in January. The university is in good shape. We’ve gone above 7,000 students for the first time. It’s time to let someone younger come in and take the reigns.” Still, his time at Pittsburg State isn’t over. After this year he’ll take a one-semester sabbatical “and get out of everyone’s hair.” He then plans to return in the spring to teach, finishing his 40-year career at the same school where it started.

Dr. Dean L. Hubbard

President, Northwest Missouri State University

 

A first-generation college graduate, Dean L. Hubbard has spent much of his 25-year tenure as president of Northwest Missouri State dedicated to making higher education affordable for all who sought it. He will retire at the end of this school year. To outsiders, his legacy most likely will be his early commitment to high technology and the electronic campus that, among several things, ensures that every student has a computer. But Hubbard is most proud of Northwest’s commitment to fostering a “Culture of Quality,” in which administration, faculty and students came to agree on the core values of the institution, and what’s important for a healthy working environment. “Higher education has a culture that can be traced to the Middle Ages,” he said. “I am one who thinks that hasn’t been a productive culture, fostering an adversarial relationship between administration and faculty.” At Northwest, in place of that adversarial relationship is one where “we try to create an environment where everyone supports everyone.” The Culture of Quality has resulted in Northwest being awarded the Missouri Quality Award three times, more than any other educational institution in the state. Hubbard served as a member of the Board of Examiners for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, served on the board of directors for the Excellence in Missouri Foundation, and received the Missouri Governor’s Quality Leadership Award in 1998. In the furtherance of educational and economic opportunitys, the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship will open in 2009 as a combination research center and high-tech business incubator.

Dr. Barbara F. Atkinson

Executive Vice Chancellor, University of Kansas Medical Center

 

Barbara Atkinson is a trailblazer. She’s one of only 14 women in the country serving as dean of a medical school and the only woman to serve simultaneously as a medical school dean and executive vice chancellor of a medical center. She was the first woman trustee of the American Board of Pathology and serves on or chairs a number of national committees, boards and societies. And she’s the first woman to lead the KU Medical Center, a role she assumed in 2005. She wasted no time making an impact on both KU Med and the greater community. “I set a goal to bring a new curriculum to the medical school and we’ve done that. We now have integrated courses with more clinical activity and computerization. We want to bring an NCI-designated cancer center to Kansas City and to Kansas, and we’ve set a 2011 target date for that.” Atkinson championed KU during a laborious, sometimes painful process that resulted in the school’s affiliation agreement with several area hospitals, including the University of Kansas Hospital. In the six years she has been dean, the school has added 242 new faculty members, clinical revenue has increased by $50 million, and grants have jumped from $69 million to $89 million the past three years. Her goals for the next five years are just as aggressive—most notably she expects KU to play a significant role in establishing Kansas City as a national leader in life sciences research.

Dr. Thomas R. Burke

President, Kansas City Kansas Community College

 

Kansas City Kansas Community College is, Tom Burke says, “one of the best-kept secrets in the Kansas City area.” That’s understandable, because most of the time since Burke became KCKCC’s president in 1992, the community that the school served was the metro area’s trouble child. Kansas City, Kan., and Wyandotte County were, after all, burdened by decades of population decline, a high crime rate and a stagnant economy. The region’s remarkable rebirth—thanks to the new Unified Government and the success of the Kansas
Speedway/Village West complex—is well-established. “We’ve played a key role in the turnaround through the success of our workforce training. Our students have been successful transferring into four-year institutions and into the workforce.” KCKCC’s Phi Theta Kappa chapter has been recognized globally as the society’s outstanding chapter. The debate team has won five consecutive national championships. The college has a relationship
with the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, which has a crime lab on campus. Burke is proud of the college’s School of Mortuary Science, one of the top in the region, and of the growth of the School of Nursing. Burke’s contributions to the community don’t stop at the college’s doors. He was one of five people selected by the governor to help develop the plan that led to the unification of the two often-competing city and county governments. He offers this advice to young people: “Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. I have learned more from my mistakes than from my successes.”